An artificial neural network (ANN) is a computational model in which a number of simple units, working individually in parallel and without central control, combine to solve complex problems. While this model may resemble an animal's brain in some respects, analogies between ANNs and brains are tenuous at best. Modern ANNs have a fixed structure, a deterministic mathematical learning process, are trained to solve one problem at a time, and are much smaller than their biological counterparts. Due to their ability to systematically classify and approximate, ANNs are often used for image processing to enhance or create an artistic rendering of an input image. Training an ANN to perform image processing techniques as well as other processes, however, typically involves computationally-intensive processes that require long periods of time to complete.